TV News LIES

Tuesday, Mar 19th

Last update06:28:22 AM GMT

You are here News Energy Thanks to North Dakota, US waste of natural gas grows rapidly

Thanks to North Dakota, US waste of natural gas grows rapidly

E-mail Print PDF

Baaken oil field glaresThe United States is flaring so much natural gas into the atmosphere - burning it as oil-field waste rather than extracting energy from it in power plants - that it now leads the world in the growth rate at which it is trashing that energy source.

Evidence of the trend can be seen flickering in the night across western North Dakota, where new oil drilling in the Bakken shale formation there has helped propel a surge in US flaring since 2007. As is often the case, many companies find it cheaper to burn off gas that emerges in new oil fields, rather than build pipelines and facilities to collect it.

But that common practice has created a big problem globally. About 5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas were flared or vented without burning worldwide last year.  That huge amount of wasted energy is roughly equal to a quarter of all natural gas consumed in the US annually, the World Bank reports. Flaring also dumped 360 million tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere over the same period, equal to the exhaust of  70 million cars.

Even so, flaring, which produces carbon dioxide emissions, is less harmful than venting natural gas directly to the atmosphere. That's because natural gas is mostly methane, about 25 times more potent than CO2 in trapping  atmospheric heat.

More...


Most Recent Related Stories...


US energy industry gas leaks are triple the official figures, study finds

US indsustry gas leaks US oil and natural gas wells, pipelines and compressors are spewing three times the amount of...

Ukraine withdraws from Avdiivka, in Russia's first major battlefield win in months

Ukraine withdrawing from AvdkivkaRussian troops have occupied the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka after a months-long assault that wore...

Schumer calls for new government, 'course corrections' by Israel

Chuck Schumer Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is calling for new elections in Israel, describing Prime Minister Benjamin...

‘Smoking gun proof’: fossil fuel industry knew of climate danger as early as 1954, documents show

Fossil fuel industry knew of dangersThe fossil fuel industry funded some of the world’s most foundational climate science as early as...
 
America's # 1 Enemy
Tee Shirt
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
TVNL Tee Shirt
 
TVNL TOTE BAG
Conserve our Planet
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
 
Get your 9/11 & Media
Deception Dollars
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
 
The Loaded Deck
The First & the Best!
The Media & Bush Admin Exposed!